1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of cancer research. More specifically, the present invention relates to gene expression profiling for human renal cell carcinoma.
2. Description of the Related Art
Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) represents a major health issue. The American Cancer Society predicts 31,900 new cases will be diagnosed in the United States alone in the year 2003, with 11,900 people dying of the disease. When clinically localized or even locally advanced, renal cell carcinoma can be surgically resected for cure using a variety of approaches. With metastatic progression, however, renal cell carcinoma is incurable, and existing systemic therapies are largely ineffective in impacting disease response or patient survival. The lack of effective systemic therapy for metastatic renal cell carcinoma is, in part, due to a fundamental lack of understanding of the molecular events that result in cellular transformation, carcinogenesis, and progression in human kidney.
The advent of gene array technology has allowed classification of disease states at molecular level by examining changes in all mRNAs expressed in cells or tissues. Gene expression fingerprints representing large numbers of genes may allow precise and accurate grouping of renal cell carcinoma. Moreover, large scale gene expression analysis have the potential of identifying a number of differentially expressed genes in renal cell carcinoma compare to normal renal epithelial cells. These genes or markers may further be tested for clinical utility in the diagnosis and treatment of renal cell carcinoma.
Thus, the identification of novel renal cell carcinoma markers to be used for detection, diagnosis and development of effective therapy against the disease remains a high priority. The prior art is deficient in understanding the molecular differences between renal cell carcinoma and normal renal epithelium. The present invention fulfills this need in the art by providing gene expression profiling for these two types of tissues.